Ansible: Production Configuration Management

Write, review, and architect Ansible automation - from single playbooks to multi-tier, compliance-hardened infrastructure management. The goal is idempotent, auditable, maintainable automation that works the same locally and in CI/CD.

Target versions (May 2026):

• ansible-core 2.20.x LTS (Python 3.12+ controller, 3.9+ target, EOL May 2027)
• ansible (community package) 13.x (depends on ansible-core 2.20)
• molecule 26.x (CalVer), ansible-lint 26.x (CalVer), ansible-navigator 26.x (CalVer)
• ansible-builder 3.1.x (EE definition v3)
• AWX 24.6.1 (stale since Jul 2024 - verify current status before recommending)
• AAP 2.6 (Oct 2025 - last RPM-installable release; AAP 2.7+ containerized-only)

This skill covers four domains depending on context:

• Playbooks - tasks, handlers, variables, conditions, loops, blocks, templates, Jinja2
• Roles & Collections - role structure, collection packaging, Galaxy/Automation Hub, Molecule testing
• Operations - inventory, Execution Environments, CI/CD integration, Vault, ansible-navigator
• Compliance - PCI-DSS 4.0 hardening, CIS benchmarks, Ansible-Lockdown, audit logging

When to use